Nan City, late May.
This was an old residential building with stairs that had been around for over twenty years. The dim hallway lights flickered on and off, and the iron railings below had peeling paint, covered in rust stains.
At this moment, the hallway echoed with the breathless and angry voice of a boy—
“That old bastard… found another mistress outside again. My mom pretended to be loving with that bastard, so it wouldn’t affect my college entrance exams…”
As a chubby guy who got winded after just a few steps, Zhou Ze felt like he was going to lose his life by the time he climbed to the fifth floor. Carrying both of their school bags, he was using both his hands and feet, barely keeping up with the boy ahead of him.
“So, Yan Xun, I told my mom that I wouldn’t go back home until after the exams and that I’d be staying at your place for tutoring…”
“Okay.”
Yan Xun, who was walking in front, spoke in a calm tone. He was carrying a ten-kilogram bag of rice, yet his steps seemed much lighter than Zhou Ze’s.
Because his mother was in poor health, Yan Xun always took care of tasks that required physical effort, like this.
After a pause, he added:
“You’ll sleep on the floor. Rent is thirty yuan per day, and tutoring fees are twenty yuan per day.”
Zhou Ze exaggeratedly said, “Tutoring from the top student… huff… only costs twenty yuan a day? How about I add two more zeros?”
Yan Xun glanced back at him: “If you have too much money, you can donate it.”
“…”
As they spoke, the two reached the sixth floor, one after the other.
Yan Xun took his bag from Zhou Ze’s back, pulled out a key, and unlocked the door. At the same time, Zhou Ze was already raising his voice—
“Aunt Lin, I’m here~”
Yan Xun’s mother’s last name was Lin—or rather, his adoptive mother’s last name was Lin.
Click.
The door opened from the inside, and the woman squinted for a moment before recognizing Zhou Ze.
“Oh, Xiao Ze, why are you here?”
Yan Xun’s adoptive mother was forty-five years old. She was very thin, and due to years of hard work, she had a lot of white hair and deep wrinkles on her face. But her features still showed traces of the beauty she had in her youth.
Zhou Ze grinned, “Of course, I came because I missed you~”
Mother Lin warmly invited him in, saying, “Come in, come in; you must be hungry. Auntie will make you some late-night snacks.”
Yan Xun was used to this. He put down the bag of rice and glanced at the digital watch on his wrist, reminding them:
“Keep it down.”
The third-year high school evening study session ended at ten, and it was almost eleven now.
“Don’t worry.”
Zhou Ze waved his hand dismissively after seeing Mother Lin go into the kitchen, saying,
“Don’t worry. That guy definitely isn’t asleep yet; he’s a night owl.”
The guy he referred to was Lin Ran, Yan Xun’s older brother, who was twenty-one years old and the biological son of his adoptive parents.
Yan Xun thought for a moment and decided to call Lin Ran to join them for a snack.
This old apartment had three bedrooms. Lin Ran occupied the master bedroom with an attached bathroom; Mother Lin stayed in the slightly smaller second bedroom; and Yan Xun lived in the smallest room.
Knock, knock.
Yan Xun lightly knocked on the master bedroom door:
“Mom is making snacks. Do you want to…”
“Leave me alone! Get lost!”
A young man’s angry voice came from inside.
Before he finished speaking, there was a loud noise from inside the room.
Bang—!
It didn’t sound like something falling, but more like the dull thud of someone hitting the ground hard.
“Xiao Ran—!”
The frightened shout came from Mother Lin, who was in the kitchen about to make snacks, but the first person to rush into the room was Yan Xun.
Zhou Ze didn’t see what happened inside because Yan Xun immediately shut the door behind him after entering.
Splash…
Inside the damp bathroom, the showerhead was running, and water was spraying everywhere. A wheelchair had toppled over, its wheels still spinning.
Lin Ran was lying on the ground in a sorry state, clutching the sink with one hand. His amputated knees pressed against the floor, the old scars looking grotesque and terrifying, rubbed raw and bleeding slightly.
He was gritting his teeth, trying to get up on his own.
These brothers were really nothing alike.
Yan Xun’s features were clean and cold; his eyes were jet black, as calm as a deep pool. He had the sturdy frame of a northerner, tall and straight, with broad shoulders and a straight back, standing there like a silent pine tree in the snow.
In contrast, his older brother, Lin Ran, was the complete opposite. His features were sharply defined, his hair a bit long, and at this moment, half of his face was hidden in the shadow of his bangs, making him look even more sharp and gloomy, like a thorny bramble.
His voice was now filled with extreme anger and panic—
“Get out! Yan Xun, are you deaf?! I said, Get out!”
“Get out!!!”
“…”
The adopted younger brother stood by the door for a few seconds, then went to turn off the water and upright the wheelchair.
“If you keep making a fuss, Mom will cry all night.”
Yan Xun was already used to this.
“Her eyesight isn’t good to begin with.”
“…”
These light words were like a sharp knife stabbing into Lin Ran’s throat. He turned his head away, gritting his teeth, and said nothing more.
Only then did Yan Xun go over and pick up the soaked young man.
Lin Ran had no lower legs and was very thin. When held, he felt light, cold, and stiff, like a hypothermic kitten.
Fifteen minutes later, the master bedroom door finally reopened.
As Yan Xun stepped out, he immediately met the eyes of his foster mother, which were filled with anxiety and worry.
“Mom, brother’s fine,” he said, lowering his eyes and explaining, “He just accidentally knocked over the wheelchair.”
As Yan Xun spoke, he quietly opened the bedroom door with a crack, allowing the anxious mother to peek inside. The eldest son, who had been throwing a tantrum earlier, was indeed asleep now. It was as if he knew she would be spying on him, so he faced away from the door, showing only the back of his head. But that was enough to ease a mother’s worries.
“Oh, he’s asleep…”
“He’s asleep; that’s good… that’s good…”
Lin Ran’s mother then turned to Yan Xun, holding his hand tightly, her eyes red with tears. “Thank you, Xiao Xun. Sorry to trouble you… It really is a burden on you…”
Every time Lin Ran threw a tantrum, she would speak to Yan Xun in this apologetic and guilt-ridden tone.
“But you know, Mom is useless, and your dad is… and your brother has been without his legs since he was little. This is how his life will be.”
Yan Xun stood in place, silently listening to the words he could practically recite by heart—
“But, Xiao Xun, you’re different. You’ve always been smart, sensible, and an excellent student. The teachers all say you have a bright future ahead of you. So, don’t hold grudges against him. In the future, he’ll still have to rely on…”
At this point, Zhou Ze, who had been listening, scratched his ear, seemingly unable to stand it any longer. He pulled Yan Xun over and pushed him towards the bathroom.
“Aiya, Aunt Lin, forget about the midnight snack. I suddenly remembered I’m on a diet. Besides, it’s so late now; we should get ready for bed.”
“…”
Lin Ran’s mother’s face stiffened, as if she wanted to say more, but Zhou Ze had already closed the door.
Bang—
Once the door was shut, Zhou Ze’s expression collapsed, though he didn’t say anything. He quickly washed up and returned to set up his bedding on the floor.
Yan Xun’s room was quite small. Apart from an old, single wardrobe and a bunk bed with a desk underneath, there was nothing else.
The desk was mostly covered with books, with a ten-yuan lamp stuck on as a makeshift desk lamp. In the center of the desk sat an old photo frame.
Inside the frame was a family portrait of Yan Xun’s family of four. Every time Zhou Ze visited, he would have to take a look, because in the photo, the eight-year-old Yan Xun had a shaved head with a jade Guanyin pendant hanging around his neck. He looked fair and clean, like a little monk.
The little monk was holding his foster mother’s hand but still stood a step away, stiffly. He pursed his lips, smiling at the camera; even the dimples at the corners of his mouth looked timid, giving the impression of nervousness and unease.
Meanwhile, eleven-year-old Lin Ran’s pants were already empty at the legs. He was being held by their father, surrounded lovingly in the center of the family.
Yet despite this, Lin Ran still cried and fussed. He clung to his father’s shoulder, showing only a pair of red, tear-filled, resentful eyes.
Zhou Ze had disliked Yan Xun’s eccentric older brother since childhood, so his gaze only skimmed over Lin Ran for a second before returning to the little bald-headed boy’s face.
After a while, Zhou Ze couldn’t resist turning around to ask him:
“Yan Xun, were you really never a monk as a kid?”
“…I just stayed at the temple for a while.”
Yan Xun closed the door.
He had just taken a shower and changed out of his blue and white school uniform into a loose black tank top. Just like in the old photo, there was a small jade Guanyin pendant hanging around his neck.
Zhou Ze sounded a bit disappointed, “Oh, I thought you had really been a little monk.”
“Sorry to disappoint you.”
As Yan Xun spoke, he grabbed the short post at the head of the bed. At that moment, the muscles in the boy’s exposed arms tightened and shifted with the movement, conveying a silent sense of strength.
The next second, he quietly flipped up onto the top bunk.
Zhou Ze was unfazed and casually called out, “Yan-ge, impressive,” before returning to finish setting up his sleeping space.
The room was so small that even sleeping on the floor didn’t offer much space.
But despite being used to living in a large villa, Zhou Ze didn’t seem to mind. He efficiently set up his bedding, turned off the light, and laid down.
The room had no air conditioning, just an old-fashioned fan whirring away. Outside, the light from an advertising sign filtered in through the window, casting a thin, eerie layer of light and shadow on the wall.
And the shadow of Little Fatty Zhou’s bulging belly.
Lying on the top bunk, Yan Xun watched for a while before he finally couldn’t resist:
“Zhou Ze, you really need to lose weight.”
“…”
Little Fatty Zhou felt guilty but was defiant:
“Just wait until I slim down. I’ll be a heartthrob for countless girls, and it wouldn’t be impossible for me to become famous all over Asia.”
“Sure, I’ll wait for you to become famous all over Asia.”
Yan Xun’s tone was perfunctory, “But for now, focus on your college entrance exams.”
“So annoying; you’re just like my mom.”
Zhou Ze turned over, quickly changing the topic.
“Hey! Yan Xun, which university are you aiming for?”
As the perennial top student at Nan City No. 7 High School, as long as Yan Xun performed normally, he could choose any university in the country.
“—Capital University, I guess.”
Yan Xun didn’t hesitate; it was clear he had already made up his mind.
“Hmm…”
Zhou Ze wasn’t surprised but suddenly started grinning mischievously.
“Hehe, Xiao Xun, do you want to go to Capital University because someone is there?”
Yan Xun’s tone remained the same, “What are you trying to say?”
“Don’t play dumb with me! You have a crush on that senior who got into Capital University, don’t you? She’s two years ahead of us, and when she graduated, she even came to our class to find you.”
Zhou Ze’s grin grew even more vulgar, and he squirmed on the floor like a grub, “So, it turns out you’re into older girls…”
Yan Xun: “…”
Bang!
A book came flying down from above.
“—Say one more word, and you can leave right now.”
Zhou Ze rubbed the bump on his head and finally shut up. But after a short while, Yan Xun heard his voice drifting up from below again.
“Xiao Xun, what do you want to do after the college entrance exams?”
“Make money.”
Late-night talks with a close friend often reveal things kept hidden during the day.
Yan Xun said, “I want to buy the best prosthetic legs for Lin Ran, so he can stand up, walk, run, and see the world.”
“Then take my mom to get her eyes treated, get my dad a better burial plot, and…”
At this point, he paused, his tone becoming serious:
“If there’s any money left, I’ll send you to a weight loss camp.”
Zhou Ze: “…Thanks, but no thanks.”
In the darkness, the boy on the top bunk smiled silently. He turned his head to count the stars outside the window.
This small town had underdeveloped industries and an economy, which meant its night sky was beautiful.
After a long silence, Yan Xun suddenly asked:
“What about you, Zhou Ze?”
“Me?”
Zhou Ze answered confidently,
“Didn’t I already tell you? I’m going to be a superstar, famous all over Asia. You’ll live the high life just by hanging out with me!”
“…Alright, superstar. Just remember to manage your image when running the 1,000 meters in gym class tomorrow.”
“No way, I have to skip class tomorrow to find my mom a top-notch divorce lawyer.”
Yan Xun sneered, “Don’t push your mom to come to school with a kitchen knife.”
“She wouldn’t, right? I’m her own son!”
“…”
The old fan whirred, harmonizing with the cicadas outside. The two inside the room chatted about random topics, their conversation wandering all over the place.
Eventually, Yan Xun got so tired that he could hardly keep his eyes open. He put on an eye mask, signaling he was really going to sleep:
“Alright, time to sleep. We have to get up at six tomorrow.”
“…”
Zhou Ze yawned, sounding equally exhausted. He mumbled a question—
“Yan Xun, you’re earning all this money for them, but what about you?”
“When you grow up, what do you want to do…”
“…”
Me?
When I grow up…
Yan Xun was already too sleepy to keep his eyes open. The question was like a drop of water falling into a deep pool, creating only a slight ripple before fading away.
·
“Beep… beep… beep…”
The alarm clock’s sound seemed to be slowed down, no longer resembling an alarm clock but more like some equipment in a hospital.
The faint smell of disinfectant drifted over from somewhere, first entering his nose and then permeating his lungs.
This really is a nightmare, Yan Xun thought.
He struggled to break free, but his eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, and his head hurt.
It hurt a lot.
As if something heavy had smashed into him.
Maybe he struggled for ten minutes, maybe it was a few hours—Yan Xun didn’t know how much time had passed. When he finally opened his eyes, the ceiling above him was unfamiliar.
This wasn’t his room, and it wasn’t his home.
Where is this?
“…You’re awake?”
A nurse stood by his bed, her tone surprised.
Yan Xun’s head was very dizzy, and his vision was blurry. He couldn’t see the nurse’s face clearly, but he could hear the excitement in her voice.
“Quick! Go get Dr. Wang; Mr. Yan is awake!”
“The one who’s been in a coma since the car accident?”
“Yes, yes, he’s finally awake. Hurry, notify the family!”
“…”
Yan Xun heard many voices and many things being said, but even though he was awake, his mind was still not clear. He couldn’t fully understand what these people were saying.
Yan Xun only knew that he was in a hospital.
In his dazed state, he wondered if he had suddenly fallen seriously ill in the middle of the night.
Does one late night really have such serious consequences?
It looks like I can’t stay up late chatting with Zhou Ze anymore.
I wonder how expensive the medical bills are. They must be very high…
Yan Xun’s mind was a jumbled mess, with countless thoughts flashing through his head.
By the time he had cleared up a bit and could move his limbs, several hours had passed—
By then, Yan Xun’s attending physician had already completed a preliminary examination.
“Things look good so far, but to be safe, we’ll need to conduct some more detailed tests. Oh, and your left leg, which is fractured, will need more time to heal.”
The doctor gently reassured him.
“They say it takes a hundred days to heal from a bone injury.”
“…A fracture?”
Yan Xun struggled to lift his head and finally saw his left leg in a cast.
He had a fracture?
Did I fall off the bed in the middle of the night???
Yan Xun didn’t realize that he had said this out loud, and then he saw the doctor’s shocked expression.
“Fell off the bed? You were in a car accident!”
Yan Xun: “…?”
A car accident???
Perhaps Yan Xun’s look of shock and confusion was too obvious, as the doctor’s expression turned from thoughtful to serious.
“What’s your name?”
“Yan Xun.”
Dr. Wang’s expression relaxed slightly, but then he asked:
“How old are you?”
“Eighteen.”
“…”
Dr. Wang’s face darkened, and even the expressions of the two nurses behind him turned somewhat strange.
He asked, “What year is it?”
Yan Xun answered, “2015.”
Shhh—
The air suddenly became quiet and heavy.
Yan Xun was baffled, but he had a vague feeling that something was seriously wrong. At this point, one of the nurses couldn’t help but speak up:
“It’s 2022 now.”
She even pulled out her phone to show him the date displayed on it—
September 13, 2022.
Yan Xun’s mind went blank: “…”
Seeing that he didn’t remember anything, Dr. Wang kindly explained:
“Here’s the situation: you were in a car accident and have been in a coma since. But now that you’re awake, we’ve already called your husband…”
“Wait!”
Before the doctor could finish, Yan Xun interrupted him.
“My husband? What husband?”
The way he asked the question made it sound like he was saying, “Which wife of mine?”
The gentle-faced nurse couldn’t help but laugh.
Dr. Wang, however, patiently explained:
“Your husband.”
“Husband?!”
Yan Xun’s mind went blank for a second.
“What does ‘husband’ mean?”
This was even harder for Yan Xun to comprehend than the fact that it wasn’t 2015 but 2022.
But as soon as he said that, the doctor and nurses exchanged a unified look. They gazed at Yan Xun with pity, as if looking at a patient whose mental faculties had been impaired by the car accident.
But Dr. Wang, who was kind-hearted, ultimately explained patiently:
“A husband is… your spouse.”
Yan Xun: “…………”
i dont like how that friend of his talks abt his disabled brother.. hmmm